Division of Wildlife seeking information on poaching incident south of Rangely

RANGELY — The Colorado Division of Wildlife is seeking information about a poaching incident on County Road 116, south of Rangely.
“Somebody poached a mule deer buck,” said Randy Hampton, public information officer for the DOW’s northwest region. “They took the head and the antlers and not much else. They left the rest to waste.”
Hampton said the incident probably occurred sometime last week.
“We found (the remains) on the 11th, and so, based on decomposition, we were able to determine it was fairly fresh,” Hampton said. “We figured it was probably on the 9th or 10th.”
The poaching took place not too far from the road.
“In the winter, when the animals are stressed, they are closer to the roads,” Hampton said. “It was right of off (County Road) 116.”
He said poaching gives hunters a bad name.
“This was somebody who is stealing from the citizens of Colorado,” Hampton said. “This is the people’s wildlife. But there are people who are too lazy to do it the legal way. It’s frustrating because it’s these kinds of things that non-hunters see and they lump them (hunters and poachers) all together.”
If anyone has information about the poaching incident, Hampton said to call the DOW’s Meeker office at 878-6090, or Operation Game Thief toll free at 877-265-6648.